baker



s sheets-sheen 2.

(No Model.)

W. R. BAKER.

MOWER.

No. 398,307. Patented Feb. 19.1889.

By @02g ttor-nays (No Model.) s sheets-sheen. 3..'

W. R. BAKER.

MOWER.

WITNESSES `INVENTOR %y5 l William E Ba'er.

lYllllilAM R.

ArENr EErcE.

BAKER, CE CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AssiGNCR To THE MCCCRMICK nARvEsTINe MACHINE COMPANY, or SAME PLACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 398,307, dated February 19, 1889.

Application filed March l2, 1885.

l?) all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, XVILLIAM R. BAKER, a citizen el' the United States, residing at Chin cago, in the county of Cook and State of lllinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvement-s in Mowers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates particularly to that class of mowers known as center-draft-that 1o is, in which the finger-bar and cutter lill the space in front of the two wheels, and the tongue extends forward centrally over said finger-bar to bring the team in front thereof; and it consists in a centinuous main frame extending from the end of the finger-bar at one side back behind the axle, to which it is bolted, then bent and Carried to the other side of the machine, where it is a second time bent and Carried to the axle on that side and bolted thereto; in combining with such main frame a diagonal brace bolted to the flaring longer arm thereof and to the rear transverse bar, and in the various other combinations and details of construction hereinafter pointed out and claimed.

In the d -awings, Figure lis a top plan view of a center-draftmower embodying my invention. Fig. l is a detail of the frame. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof; Fig. 3, an enlarged detail in plan of the mechanism at' the heel end of the cutter-bar. Fig. 4 is a side elevation thereof; Figs. 5 and (3, respectively, enlarged details in plan and side elevation (from the inner side) of the construction at the opposite end of the finger-bar; and Fig. 7, an enlarged detail of the pitman which connects the cutter and the bell-crank.

A is the axle, herein shown as a cylindrical metal shaft, to afford a pivot for the draftfranie, and B represents the carrying-wheels turning loosely on said axle. Sleeved upon' the axle are a couple of bracket-castings, l), Connected by a metal bar, b', which extends from one to the other, parallel with and immediately in front of said axle, and from these castings hounds h2 reach diagonally forward until they meet the draft-tongue C, which at its rear supports a spring-standard for the seat C', and is yoked to the axle by a curved or clip bolt, which may also serve to secure Serial No. 158,621. (No model.)

the seat-stainlard, as shown. The space between the hounds is filled with planlcing to forni a platform.

Thus far the construction is substantially the same as already known in machines of this class.

rlhe main frame consists, primarily, of a single bar, D, of pipe-iron, having one long arm, d, and one short arm, d', both arms being parallel with the inner faces of the wheels 6o on their respective sides of the machine, and the uniting portion being behind and parallel with the axle, but practicallyjust outside the tread of the wheel at the rear, depending somewhat on the diameter of the main gear. The short arnr terminates with and is bolted to the axle on its side, between the adjacent wheel and the bracket-bearing for the draftframe just described. The longer arm is also bolted to the axle on its own side of the ma- 7o chine, in similar relation to the wheel and bracket-bearing at that point, but extends forward, still parallel with theiface of the wheel, until it reaches the front tread, when it flares outwardly a short distance to bring the end of the finger-bar, which it supports, in front of the tread, that a clean cut may be made in the path of the wheel. Behind the axle this frame is further strength` ened by` a tubular orpipe-irou tie-bar, E, par- 8o allel with the rear bar of the fraineand united to the side arms by Ts or T-couplings e e', as shown, which are respectively right and left threaded, so that by means of corresponding male threads upon the interlocking ends of the tie-bar the latter may be driven home by means of a wrench and the frame tightened until its arms are in their proper position. From the flaring end of the longer arm Y of the frame a brace, E', is carried diagonally 9o 'back beneath the axle to this tie-bar E, to

which it is bolted, and thence is carried on to the rear bar of the frame D and again bolted. It may also be bolted or clipped to the axle. This construction affordsa very strong, rigid, and yet extremely light frame. To the front end of the longer frame-band, is secured a casting, F, which has bearings f for the j ournals ot' a bell-crank, F', and has also beneath and slightly in advance of said bearings a roo ball, f', to form one member of a universal coupling with the heel of the shoe on the iinger-bar at that end. Beyond this it is cut away beneath, but bridges the shoe to near its forward end, where it has a subtending ii ange, f2, upon which the toe of the shoe rests with liberty to play up and down. At the cxtreme front the casting is slotted vertically, or nearly vertically, for the reception of the shank of a stud-axle, upon which one of the lead-wheels F2 turns, and by means of a clamping-nut said wheel can be adjusted up and down to change the normal height of cut. The shoe g at this end of the finger-bar G has in its heel a socket, g', to receive the aforementioned ball from the casting, and a cappiece, g2, correspondingly cupped, which is bolted over and confines said ball, thus completing the universal joint.

Near the heel of the cutter-bar Il is a ballstud, h, and the adjacent end of the bellcrank, as also its farther end, has also a ballstud. The connection between the bell-crank and the stud and the cutter-bar is made by a short link, I, which, on account of the balljoints, will not interfere with the tilting or rocking or other flexions of the finger-bar upon the universal coupling. This link or pitman I have, for the purpose of taking up wear, constructed in the following manner: It is composed, primarily, of a substantially rectangular frame, t', widened at certain points and at others narrowed, as shown, being narrowed, however, at both ends. At the fart-her end it is rounded and thickened to form a seat, t, that has ahemispherical socket to receive one side of the ball-stud from the heel of the cutter-bar. Aft er this comes a block, 712, having grooved sides to embrace the bars of the frame, but cupped at both ends and narrower in the middle than at the ends, so as to be slipped into the frame by matching with certain of its spacings that embrace the other side of the stud, while receiving in its opposite cup the stud from the bell-crank,

and a short block or follower, 3, cupped on its inn cr side, comes last of all, guided, like the others, by engagement with the bars at the narrower part of the link-frame. Finally, a set-screw, t", threaded into an enlargement at the outer end of the frame, presses upon the follower, and may at any time be adjusted to bring the parts closer together, and thus take up wear.

The opposite, or what may be termed the free, end of the linger-bar, since it is to be permit-ted to rise and fall irrespective of the movement of the main frame,is kept in alignment by means of alink or thrust-bar, K, pivoted to the main frame or to the axle, and also to the casting supporting the finger-bar on that side of the machine. In the present instance I have shown this thrust-bar as connected at its rear end to the T, which unites the main-frame bar and the tie-bar at that side of themachincbyaball-and-socket joint,

7c, the socket being formed in a web filling one angle of said T. The necessity for a universal joint at this end of the thrust-bar is occasioned by the universal coupling between what I will call the heel end of the fingerbar, or that end connected with the longer arm of the main frame and the casting at that point, and the consequent resultants of the l'lexions, independent of the movement of the main frame, intended to be permitted to the free end of the finger-bar by means of thc thrust-bar, and the joint is placed at the intersection of the main bar and its tie-bar merely for convenience, although it should be at least as far back as the axle for good effect.

At the front end the thrust-bar is connected by an upwardly-trending or practically vert-ical pivot-pin, lt', with the forward end of a casting, L, which has an upright slot in front for the adjust-able reception of the shank of a stub-axle supporting the lead-wheel at this end, and, like the other casting, bridges the shoe, and has a subtending Hange, l, at its forward end, upon which the point of said shoe is supported, but is connected to the heel of said shoe by a horizontal pivot-pin, Z', instead of a ball-joint, for which there is no necessity at this end.

For the purpose of raising the cutter-bar a rock-shaft, M, is mounted in bearings m, afforded bythe sleeved brackets which support the draft-frame, and has at its end two segments, fm', one over the long arm of the pipeframe or main frame and one over the link or thrust-bar at the opposite side of the machine. From these segments chains are carried, respectively, to the arm and link. An ordinary lever, with its rack and locking-dog, is attached to the rock-shaft in a convenient position to be reached by the driver, so that by rocking the shaft in one direction the chains may be wound upon the segments and the finger-bar lifted, and by rocking it in the other direction the chains will be let out. The purpose of this is to avoid unusual obstructions, as the lead-wheels will be sufficient to .keep the finger-bar clear `under all ordinary circumstances, and also to lift and carry the finger-bar when turning in the field' and for transportation.

In bearings near the rear of the frame is mounted the driving-shaft N, having ratchetclutched pinions n at its ends, engaging with annular gears O on the carrying-wheels, and bearing a spur-gear, P, which turns loosely on the shaft, and is engaged therewith at will by means of a clutch, p, controlled by the driver. This meshes with and drives a small pinion, Q, fast to a short counter-shaft, q, supported in a bracket-castin g depending from the main frame, and this counter-shaft bears at its outer end, between the carryingwheel and the long frame-bar, the wrist-pin for the pitman S, whereby motion is communicated to thc bell-crank and ultimately to the cutter.

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The operation of the machine will be `plain from the foregoing` description and needs no further statement.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of a main frame having onelong arm connected to the rear of the finger-bar at its heel end by a universal joint, and a link or thrust-bar connected to the rear of the finger-bar at the other end by a hinge-joint, and to the main frame by a universal joint.

i. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of a main frame having one long arm connected to the rear of the finger-bar at its heel end by a universal joint, and a link or thrust-bar having an upwardly-trendin g pivotal connection with the finger-bar at its forward end.

Si. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of a main frame having one long arm connected to the rear of the Finger-bar at its heel end by a universal joint, and a link or thrust-bar having an upwardlytrending pivotal conn eetion with the .iingenbar at 'its forward end, and universally jointed to the main frame at its rear end.

et. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of a main frame having one long arm connected with the rear of the nger-bar at its heel end by a universal joint, and a casting in which the other end of the finger-bar is carried, a hinge-j oint between said casting and the rear of the linger-bar at that end, and a link or thrust-bar connected with said casting by a practically-upright pivot.

5. The combination, substantially as hereinbet'ore set fort-h, in a center-draft mower, of a main frame having one long arm connected v with the rear of the linger-bar at its heel end by a universal joint, a casting in which the other end of the fin ger-baris carried, a hingejoint between said casting and the rear of the ringer-bar at that end, and a link or thrustbar connected with said casting by a practically-upright pivotand with the main frame by a universal joint.

rlhe combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of a main frainehaving one long arm connected with the rear of the finger-bar at its heel end by a universal joint, a bell-crank in bearings rigid with said arm adjacent to the fingerbar, and a short pitman connecting a ballstud in one end of said bell-crank with a ballstud on the heel of the cutter-bar, and alink or thrust-bar connected to the rear of the fingerbar at the other end by a hinge-joint and to the main frame by a universal joint, whereby the finger-bar is permitted to tilt or rock to follow the sinuosities of the ground and to rise and fall at the linkconnected end irrespective of the motion of the main frame and without interfering with the driving of the cutter.

7. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of the main frame, thrust-bar, the castings connected, respectively, to the long arm of the main frame and to the thrust-bar, the fingerbar hinged at its rear to said castings, the subte'nding iianges or ledges on said castings upon which the toes of the shoes rest, and the lead-wheels secured to said castings in advance of the linger-bar.

S. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of the main frame, the thrust-bar, the castings connected, respectively, to the long arm of the mainframe bya rigid joint and to the thrust-bar bya practically-uprigl'it pivot, and the linger-bar united at its rear with the first castingby a universal joint and with the second by a hinge-joint.

t). The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of the main frame, the thrust-bar, the castings connected, respectively, to the long arm of the main frame by a rigid joint and to the thrust-bar by a practically-upright pivot, the iin ger-bar united at its rear with the first easting by a universal joint and with the second by a hinge-joint, and the subtending ledges or flanges from said castings upon which the toes of the shoes rest. A

l0. Thecombination, substantially as hercinbefore set forth, with the long arm of the main frame, of a casting having ears for the reception oi' the bell-crank and a forwardproj ectin ball to form a universal joint with the heel of the shoe, a subtending flange or ledge in front to support the toe of said shoe, and provision for the attachment of a leadwheel in advance of said shoe.

1l. In a center-draft mower, the main frame formed of a single bar extending from the axle at one side toward the rear parallel with the wheel, then bent at right angles to itself and carried to the other side, and again bent and passing alongside the wheel on that side to its forward tread, and there flaring eutwardly to its point of connection with the finger-bar, combined with a through-axle, to which both arms Vof the frame are bolted.

l2. In a center-draft mower, the mainframe, consisting of a single bar of pipe metal bolted to the axle at one side adjacent to the wheel and extending rearwardly parallel with said wheel to near its tread, then bent at right angles to itself and carried to the other side adjacent to the wheel on that side, and again bent and carried parallel with the inner side of that wheel past the axle, to which it is bolted, to near the front tread of the wheel, and finally flaring outwardly to its point of connection with the linger-bar.

13. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, in a center-draft mower, of the main-frame bar, of a single length of pipe metal bent into the form described, the tiebar, also of pipe met-al and having its ends respectively right and left screw threaded,

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and the T-couplings which unite ihe framebar and the tie-bm.

1l. The combination, Substantially als hereinbefore set forth, 'in a ce11ter-draft mower, of the main-'frame bar bent into the form described alud a diagonal brace belted to its [hiring longer arm zuid to the rear arm.

l5. The combination, substentiallyas hercinbefore set forth, in L center-draft mower, of the tubular main-frame bar bent into the form described, the tubular tie-'brrr and T- couplings, and the diagonal brace.

1 0. The casting' F, having' bearings f for the journal ol`- the bell-c1'auk,mi(l slotted at its lom'zrrd cud to :rdjustzrbly receive the shank of :L stirb-axle For the lezul-\\'licel.

17. The casting F, having near its rear an outwardly-projecting ball-stud and at its front a subteiiding ledge or iange and cut away therebetween to form L bridge.

1S. The castingF, formed, substantially as described, With bearingsf, L ball-stud, f', and subtending iuig'e f2, and an upright slot 'for the reception adjustably of the shank of a Stub-axle for the lead-Wheel.

lf). The T-coupling e', formed with. n. web in one of its angles having L ball-Socket Vfor the rear end of the thrust-bar.

WILLAM R.l BAKER.

TWitnesses:

PAUL ARNOLD, S. C. A. UoL'rH. 

